NBA Rumors: Ben Simmons, Sixers Haven't Had Any Contact This Offseason?

A recent report indicates that Ben Simmons and the Sixers haven't had any contact this offseason.

When the 2020-2021 NBA season came to an end early for the Philadelphia 76ers, there were tons of question marks surrounding Ben Simmons' future with the organization. As Simmons put on a fairly disappointing performance during the seven-game series in round two, many were wondering if a superstar shakeup was coming.

But Sixers head coach Doc Rivers didn't want to jump the gun on that. During his final press conference of the season, Rivers made it clear that he wanted to help Simmons rather than abandon him. Although he understood there was a lot of work to be done, Rivers was confident he could lay out an offseason plan to help Simmons improve weaker areas of his game this summer so he could come back better next year.

“I know exactly what we want to do,” Rivers said back in June. “I’m very bullish on Ben still, but there’s work, and Ben will be willing to do it, and that’s the key. Sometimes you have to go through stuff to see it and be honest with it. Obviously, what Ben just went through, I can’t imagine that, because he has so much greatness around him and all the things that he does.”

How's that process going for Rivers and Simmons so far? Apparently, it's not going at all. On a recent episode of Liberty Ballers' "The Gastroenteritis Blues" podcast, Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report reported that Simmons and the Sixers haven't really had any contact this offseason.

"They haven’t been able to really even get in touch with Ben since the season ended," Fischer said. "Like, there was an intent to have a workout plan or whatever -- like in any offseason. That’s always kind of been the case, that the Sixers haven’t been able to align with a development plan [for Ben] -- that’s kind of what Yaron Weitzman wrote at Fox Sports in that big story. It just doesn’t sound like there’s ever been movement to come together on the same page to do that, and it hasn’t really worked this summer either." 

For what it's worth, Kyle Neubeck of The PhillyVoice reported the Sixers denied that Simmons and the organization haven't had any dialogue this offseason. "We talked to Ben on his birthday a couple of days ago," an anonymous team source said, according to Neubeck. "We've been in touch with him throughout the summer. We're going to send some training personnel out to see him this summer, too. We have good dialogue with Ben, his team, and his family." 

It seems Rivers' plan to work with Simmons this offseason hasn't come to life just yet. Like every other offseason, Simmons has been working with his personal trainer out in Los Angeles. Per Neubeck's report, that's expected to change sometime soon, but for the time being, Simmons' offseason plans seem to have remained the same.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.